Judges: MARK PRYOR, Attorney General
Filed Date: 12/22/1999
Status: Precedential
Modified Date: 7/5/2016
Dr. Roger L. Worsley, Chancellor Southern Arkansas University Tech SAU Tech Station Camden, AR 71701
Dear Dr. Worsley:
You have requested an Attorney General opinion concerning the release of certain records under the Freedom of Information Act (A.C.A. §
You indicate that the Arkansas Fire Training Academy, which is a unit of Southern Arkansas University Tech in Camden, operates the Arkansas Fire Incident Reporting System. The Training Academy gathers information from Arkansas fire departments, both paid and volunteer, collates this information, and forwards it to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The information obtained by the Academy consists of various forms concerning fire-related data. You have provided me with examples of these forms. You further indicate that the Arkansas Fire Training Academy has recently received requests for this information from insurance companies, the Insurance Commission, and various attorneys. You state that it has been the policy of the Training Academy to require subpoenas before releasing this information.
In light of this situation, you have presented the following question:
Can the Arkansas Fire Training Academy release the above-described fire incident information without requiring a subpoena?
It is my opinion, as explained more fully below, that under the FOIA, the Arkansas Fire Training Academy must release the fire data records that it maintains (subject to exemptions, of course) without requiring a subpoena.1
As an initial matter, I must point out that the FOIA does not require the Arkansas Fire Training Academy to provide "information." Rather, it requires the provision of "public records." See A.C.A. §
"Public records" means writings, recorded sounds, films, tapes, or data compilations in any form, required by law to be kept or otherwise kept, and which constitute a record of the performance or lack of performance of official functions which are or should be carried out by a public official or employee, a governmental agency, or any other agency wholly or partially supported by public funds or expending public funds. All records maintained in public offices or by public employees within the scope of their employment shall be presumed to be public records.
A.C.A. §
The above-quoted definition is clearly broad enough to include the records that are maintained by the Arkansas Fire Training Academy.2
Although the FOIA lists various records that are exempt from the requirement of disclosure, none of the exemptions appear to apply generally to the type of records that you have described (and examples of which you have provided). However, some of the exemptions may apply to information contained in those records. For example, the forms you have provided (if completed fully) would reflect medical information about individuals. This information could be deemed to constitute a "medical record" within the meaning of the FOIA, which is specifically exempt from disclosure. A.C.A. §
In light of the possibility that the forms would contain information that is exempt from disclosure under the FOIA, it will be necessary to review each record to determine whether it contains information that should be redacted before the record is released. In any event, once all appropriate redactions have been made, the record must be released under the requirements of the FOIA, without requiring a subpoena.
I must note that the FOIA only requires the Arkansas Fire Training Academy to provide these records to Arkansas citizens who request them.See A.C.A. §
Assistant Attorney General Suzanne Antley prepared the foregoing opinion, which I hereby approve.
Sincerely,
MARK PRYOR Attorney General